Elsewhere, after a late flurry of actual news – £32m Diego Costa to Chelsea and £5m Siem de Jong to Newcastle – today’s rumours relax back on to familiar ground. “Barça Bite On Luis” reckons the Sun. And the £80m Liverpool will pick up in return will be plenty to cover a hijacking of Puma’s interest in having Arsenal sign Mario Balotelli.

Mino Raiola, Mario’s agent, reckons the time for a deal is close – and only one factor will determine where his client goes. “Maybe it was a mistake to bring Mario back to Italy. For him it is essential to go where he is loved. At AC Milan some people love him. Some do not.”

Missing out on Mario could leave Arsenal eyeing Colombia’s Jackson Martínez instead, tempted by his cut-price £35m buy-out clause. “As a child I cheered for Arsenal,” reckons Jackson. “They play a game that suits me. If I had the occasion to play there, I would say yes.” But team-mate James Rodríguez only has eyes for Spain. “It would be a dream to play in Spain,” he says. “I prefer Real Madrid.”

Arsenal also fancy Newcastle’s Mathieu Debuchy for £12m and the Costa Rica keeper Keylor Navas, while Manchester United’s move for Thomas Vermaelen is closer than it was yesterday. United plan to pair him with Feyenoord’s Stefan de Vrij, and – in a tacit acknowledgement that maybe they didn’t get the mix right last season – also fancy Roma’s Kevin Strootman, Bayern Munich’s Arjen Robben, Juve’s Arturo Vidal, PSV’s Memphis Depay, Torino’s Alessio Cerci and Borussia Dortmund’s £20m-rated Mats Hummels.

Fulham have weighed up £12m Kostas Mitroglou’s stand-out performances in Brazil and worked out how best to use him: they’ll send him on loan to Besiktas with a view to a permanent move.

Blackpool are “playing hardball” with Hull: demanding £8m for Tom Ince, which is delaying his much-thought-about next big move. But Ince is still sure he’s finally found his dream club, after scouring every other option in Europe. “I am not in talks with any other clubs,” says Tom. “Now we shall see what happens in the next few days.”

Spurs are ready to battle Atlético Madrid for £20m-rated Alvaro Negredo – but Atlético have a clean run on Swansea’s Michu. And, in whizkid news, Derby whizkid Will Hughes has signed a new deal, despite/because of ongoing interest from Manchester United.